


Private Lessons

by tptigger



Category: Power Rangers Turbo, Power Rangers Zeo
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-18
Updated: 2013-12-18
Packaged: 2018-01-05 00:45:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1087586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tptigger/pseuds/tptigger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rocky and Justin seemed pretty close in the Turbo movie.  Ever wonder why?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Private Lessons

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rivulet027](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rivulet027/gifts).



Rocky was excited to volunteer at Little Angel's Haven. Doubly so because he could do so by teaching a martial arts class. He had to move a few tables out of the way in the rec room and put down some mats to make it safe, but the extra work was worth it. He finished just as a group of 12 year olds streamed in, all looking various degrees of excited and nervous, most wearing loose sweats and sneakers.

One of the boys entered barefoot, wearing a blue gi. He had dark hair, a bowl cut, and seemed halfway between excited and just sad. Rocky wondered how he had landed here, and how long he had been taking martial arts before that had happened. Rocky picked up the packet of name tags and box of markers. "Grab a name tag, I'm hopeless with names."

He was also wearing a name tag, it seemed only fair. The kids each passed the box of name tags around with a box of markers, and the boy in the gi chose a blue marker. Rocky couldn't help but wonder if he should be concerned about that.

He introduced himself and went through his opening spiel about marital arts, how it was about discipline, control, and only for defense. He could see the boy with the blue gi, his name tag said Justin, in the back taking it in, and nodding softly in agreement. OK, that was good. He started the kids off with some simple kicks, then got into the physics of how to safely throw a punch.

Then the hour was over.

"Hey, Justin," he said, as the other boys were over.

There were a few oohs.

"Really, people," Rocky said. "Get going."

"Yes, sensei?" Justin asked, meeting Rocky's eyes, but shifting nervously from foot to foot.

"Could you come at this time next week?"

Justin raised an eyebrow.

"This was too basic for you, your form is perfect."

"Thank you, sensei," Justin replied.

"So why don't you show me your last kata so I know where to start next week and we'll do some private lessons?"

The boy's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Really?"

"Really," Rocky said. "I may have to reschedule sometimes, but you don't belong in a beginner's class."

"They're not going to pay you extra, you know," Justin said sadly.

"I'm a volunteer," Rocky said. "And I'm volunteering to give you private lessons, so let's see that kata."

Justin ran through it, and Rocky couldn't help but admire his form. He also recognized the kata.

"Shiba Martial Arts in Stone Canyon?" Rocky asked.

"How'd you guess?" Justin asked.

"I learned that one at about your age."

"There's one other one I learned recently," Justin said, smiling wickedly.

"Let's see."

Justin hummed as he did this one, it had a few unnecessary moves and a certain beat that nearly made him laugh.

"How many Hip Hop Kido classes did you take from Zack Taylor?"

"One or two over the summer," Justin said. "I was kind of hoping he'd come do more after the Peace Conference."

"He stayed on to finish school in Switzerland," Rocky said.

"You know him?"

"I'm close with some of his friends, we keep in touch."

Zack had sent Billy a postcard. Billy's parents had asked Rocky to drop by one day and wordlessly passed on the postcard. Rocky still wasn't sure what they'd been told about Billy going to Aquitar, but...

That was neither here nor there.

"OK, so I'll see you after my other class, sharp, next week," Rocky said.

"Thank you, sensei."

* * *

The next week, Justin slipped in as the other kids were slipping out, his face freshly washed, but his hands covered in newsprint.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, Sensei."

"OK, so we're going to start a new kata today," Rocky said. "Show me a basic roundhouse kick."

Justin started to perform the move, but lost his balance.

"Sorry, sensei, I'll do it again," Justin said.

He fell again, this time pulling his legs to his chest.

"What's the most important thing about martial arts?" Rocky sat down next to him him.

"Mental balance." Justin stared at the mat.

"Can you give me a reason why?"

"It affects your physical balance," Justin replied softly.

"Want to tell me what happened?"

"My dad was supposed to visit earlier," Justin said. "He didn't show up."

Rocky frowned. Why was this kid in a group home if he had a dad, a family? "That sucks."

"He..." Justin sighed. "I just hope it's not because he was drinking again."

That could do it.

"He did that a lot, after my mom died. He never hurt me or anything, but he was a moron and drove home drunk a lot, and well..."

"They took you away."

"He's 90 days sober. He was supposed to get a visit. I don't know why he didn't show up," Justin said softly.

"Maybe his car broke down and he couldn't find a phone," Rocky suggested.

"Maybe," Justin said, quietly.

"This has happened before?"

Justin nodded. "Four months ago. He'd been 180 days sober before then and..."

"Ugh," Rocky said, wondering if Justin would accept a hug from a near stranger. He wondered if he could get permission to take Justin to Ernie's for some ice cream, because there wasn't going to be any physical training going on today. Mental training, maybe.

"I was hoping the lesson would take my mind off of things, but I guess I'm kind of off balance."

An idea struck Rocky. "Have you ever learned Tai Chi?"

"You know Tai Chi too?" Justin asked. "How many marital arts do you know?"

"I know people who know people," Rocky said. "We trade lessons. Let's just start with following your breath and practicing tones."

"It sounds a little more like yoga," Justin said, making a face.

"Hey, don't knock yoga, it helped Master Shiba maintain his flexibility..."

"...until he was 104, I heard that story too," Justin said, grinning.

"OK," Rocky said. "Let's get started."

* * *

Rocky began to wonder if maybe suggesting that Justin enter the junior charity tournament was a bad idea, Justin was just staring at the flyer Rocky had brought him.

"You'd be really good," Rocky said. "And my friends and I have the senior division covered, trust me, but I thought it might be good for you to get some tournament experience in. Just in case you ever want to go back. Low pressure."

It was, after all, only a $500 prize.

"No, it's not that, it's just..." Justin shuffled his bare feet.

"Just what?" Rocky asked. He and Justin had grown close over the last few months and he knew that the shelter's current financial situation was worrying the boy. He'd been thinking--and Tommy, Adam, Rocky's parents, and even Zordon agreed--that having Justin participate in the tournament might give him a sense of control.

"The date. It's the week before the anniversary of Mom..." he stopped.

Crap. Rocky should've realized, based on what Justin's social worker had told him, that this was the time of year that his mother died.

"Likely to set you a little off-balance, huh?" Rocky asked.

"A lot off balance," Justin said. "Not worth my entry fee for the shelter."

Rocky and the other Rangers had that covered, but if Justin didn't want to participate, he certainly wasn't going to tell him that.

* * *

Rocky stared at Justin for a minute after the latter had crawled out from under his hospital bed and admitted he had figured out that Rocky and his friends were the Power Rangers.

Justin must have spent about ten minutes peppering him with questions, all of which Rocky answered dutifully--but not before swearing him to secrecy. And there was a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Somehow, Power knew how, he knew it was time.

Rocky sighed. He'd talked to Zordon about this, and they had agreed that between Justin's propensity for the color blue and his personality that there was a good chance that he'd be a Ranger someday. However, by "someday" they thought in three or four years, not six months!

Rocky summoned his morphing equipment, and activated his communicator. "Zordon, I'm sending Justin in. He heard us talking and knows who the Power Rangers are. I figured you'd want to talk to him about it."

"Very well, Rocky, please send him in."

The Beginning


End file.
